Good News, workers Returning to San Francisco Offices, but…

The good news is that more people are coming to work in downtown San Francisco in 2025. “Office badge-swipe data compiled by the security company Kastle from select buildings in the San Francisco area continue to show weekly office-occupancy numbers compared to pre-COVID attendance being among the lowest of 10 metropolitan areas. For the week ending May 21, the San Francisco area was in last place, with an average occupancy at 41.9% of what it was in February 2020, as compared with a 53.1% average for the ten areas and a high of 61.9% in Houston.” San Francisco increased its office visits 7.6% over the past year, but “Data from multiple other sources, meanwhile, suggest that despite return-to-office mandates from some big companies — including Amazon, Salesforce, JPMorganChase and, more recently, Gap Inc. — a dramatic surge of employees coming back to downtown soon is unlikely.” New York nears full recovery with 94% back in the office, while Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco are in the 60-65% back in the office range. SF Examiner June 3, 2025